In California last year, the state intercepted over $300 million in child support payments that should have gone to low-income children and their families. Every year, hundreds of thousands of poor children across the state receive just a fraction of the child support payments made by their parents. That’s because, despite having the fifth largest economy in the world, California takes all but the first $50 of every child support payment made to children who receive public benefits and uses it to reimburse the government for the cost of providing those benefits. This report was a collaborative effort with organizations such as the Insight Center for Community Economic Development and Western Center on Law & Poverty to raise awareness of the unfair system that deprives poor children of critical resources, particularly children of color, and lift up recommendations for reform.

Mirroring national trends, Pinellas County in Florida is becoming more diverse. In the next few decades, the majority of the county’s residents will be people of color from a rich variety of racial and ethnic backgrounds. As a result, the success and prosperity of the county rely on dismantling unjust barriers and ensuring that everyone can participate in and enjoy the benefits of a thriving economy. This profile illustrates how disparities in income, housing, educational attainment, and many other areas are costing Pinellas County billions of dollars in potential economic growth each year. In addition, the accompanying summary offers several promising strategies that have been used across the country to eliminate barriers and advance equity. Both the profile and summary were developed by PolicyLink and the Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE) at USC, in partnership with UNITE Pinellas. Read the profile and summary.

Media: Report: With Population Shifts on the Way, Pinellas Needs to Change (Tampa Bay Times), Study: Addressing Racial Inequities Would Boost Pinellas County GDP by $3.6 Billion (St. Pete Catalyst), First-ever Countywide Equity Assessment Spotlights Need for Change (Tampa Bay Newspapers), Insight Action, Not Data Collection, Required to Create Nutrition Equity in St. Petersburg (St. Pete Catalyst)